The present invention relates to a pad of thin, flexible bags which are manufactured and sold in a sterile condition. Such bags may be used in a hospital or surgery room, and it is desired that sterility be maintained until the time of use.
The idea of providing flexible bags in packet form is not new; see, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,312,339. However, in that patent, bags are held together by a separate fastener which functions like a desk calendar holder and also provides a shearing edge along which individual bags are torn for removal from the pad. Lines of perforation extend across the top of the bags and they are in alignment with apertures for receiving the fastener to facilitate removal of an individual bag.
Other patents relating to the provision of a plurality of separate bags include U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,353,661, 3,021,947, 3,768,725, and 3,627,611, and 3,341,003.
All of the articles disclosed in the above patents suffer from one or more of the following disadvantages or defects: inability to maintain sterility, too great a cost in relation to end use, difficulty of handling or replacing bags, difficulty of removing bags, or requirement of additional manufacturing operation, such as perforating or punching of holes.
In the present invention, a pad of sterile bags is provided wherein each bag is made of a thin, flexible thermoplastic material, such as sheet polyethylene having a thickness of approximately one mil. The bags are provided in side-by-side relation, and each bag includes a continuous sealed edge. The mouths of the bags are heat-fused to provide a book-like pad with the opposite edges of the bags being free from one another.
The weld or fusion area forms a binding for the individual bags which are without perforation or other aperture. The binding provides a solid marginal grip to facilitate handling of the pad, and it also defines a line of weakness for each individual bag. A bag may be removed from the pad by holding the stiffened margin and separating along the fused edge. When a bag is thus separated from the pad, it is automatically opened for use.
Thus, with the present invention, a plurality of bags are provided in an integral pad and in such condition as to maintain sterility until use. When a bag is removed from the pad, the mouth is automatically opened for use. The pad is thus economical to manufacture, convenient to use, has long storage life without diminished sterility, and does not require extraneous manufacturing operations such as perforating or hole-punching.
Other features and advantages of the present invention will be apparent to persons skilled in the art from the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment accompanied by the attached drawing.